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Big Bad Wolf
The Big Bad Wolf was a steel suspended coaster located in the Oktoberfest section of Busch Gardens Williamsburg. The ride opened in 1984, closing in 2009 to make room for Verbolten. Ride history Shortly before construction of the Big Bad Wolf, Anton Schwarzkopf had designed a Flying Coaster prototype for the park. Even though 3/4 of the ride had already been constructed, the attraction was never completed and was completely demolished. Busch Gardens Williamsburg handed the contract to coaster manufacturer, Arrow Huss, who built the attraction. After Kings Island's The Bat failed, Arrow Huss refurbished their suspended coaster prototype and opened the XLR-8 at Six Flags Astroworld. The attraction operated until the closure of Astroworld in 2005. By then, construction on the ride had been complete, and test results revealed that the ride was ready for opening. Busch Gardens announced that it would open on March 18, two months before XLR-8 would. Unfortunately, due to mechanical problems (such as having to put a block brake on the coaster's final drop to slow it down), the opening was delayed for three months. Finally, the Big Bad Wolf made its Busch Gardens debut on the morning of Friday, June 15, 1984. On July 24, 2009, Busch Gardens notified that the Big Bad Wolf would be demolished after 25 years of operation at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. The Big Bad Wolf closed on September 7, 2009, and was subsequently demolished at the end of the same season. However, the park decided to keep the footers, queue line, and station up. Three years later, on May 18, 2012, the Big Bad Wolf's replacement, Verbolten, officially opened. Ride synopsis After guests were loaded and given the clear for dispatch, an on-ride voice recording said, "''Thank you, and enjoy traveling at the speed of fright!" ''The train would commence its ride with a small dip out of the station, hit a block brake, and climb its way up the 113-foot lift hill. The train would then turn to the left, making its way through a quaint Bavarian village, just barely missing houses and shops. Next, it would make its way through a helix in a wooden area alongside the Bavarian village. The train then entered a series of block brakes to slow it down before ascending up the attraction's second lift. After reaching the top of the second lift, it turned to the right and zoomed at 48 mph down the 99-foot drop that towered above the man-made Rhine River, narrowly missing the water. The train then swerved sharply to the left, went through several additional twists and turns, and made its way back to the station. Trivia *The roller coaster is homaged in several ways by its successor, Verbolten. For example, the new coaster reuses the Big Bad Wolf's footers, queue line, and station, and the coaster's 88-foot drop is similar to Big Bad Wolf's famous 100-foot drop over the man-made Rhine River. One of the ride's five vehicles carries a license plate with "WOLF X ING" engraved on it. Also, one of the three scenes inside the event building displays flaming red wolf eyes. Also, some of the attraction uses Big Bad Wolf's former territory. Records *The coaster was the first closed roller coaster ever on the Wikia's Coaster of the Week list. When Griffon peaked at #1 for the week of April 28, 2013 - May 4, 2013, the Big Bad Wolf took spot #9 on the list. Statistics *Originally, the 99-foot drop over the Rhine River had special fog machines to enhance the mysterious effect of being extremely close to the neighboring Rhine River. In the early 1990's, however, the fog machines were taken out. *The attraction was the park's fifth roller coaster, and the park's sixth roller coaster to close. Photo Gallery bigbaddrop.JPG|The attraction's breathtaking 99-foot drop over the manmade Rhine River. Category:Busch Gardens Williamsburg Category:Oktoberfest Category:1984 Category:Closed attractions Category:Rollercoasters